The harder you climb, the higher you live.

Buntaro Mori is a loner, but being alone in a crowd is almost as bad as being forced to fit in. When a dangerous bid for solitude introduces Mori to the rush of solo climbing, he becomes addicted to the brilliant sense of freedom he finds as he pits his body and soul against the heights. But how high does he have to climb to leave humanity behind?

The tragic deaths of his teammates in the northern Japanese Alps leave Mori reeling, but despite the devastating experience, his love of climbing has not been dimmed. His ability to handle other people has suffered, though, and it takes an incredible job offer to finally draw him back down into civilization. There, he finds everything is just as terrible as he left it. Will his new hopes for the future get snagged on the relentlessness of reality?

Shin’ichi Sakamoto debuted as a manga artist in 1990. His series The Climber and Innocent have both won the Excellence Award at the Japan Media Arts Festival. His series #DRCL midnight children is also available in English from VIZ Media.

Jiro Nitta was a Japanese novelist and meteorologist. Born in 1912, he pioneered the field of mountain novels, writing while working at the Central Meteorological Observatory. Nitta won the 1955 Naoki Prize for Goriki Den. His other works include The Climber and Death March on Mount Hakkoda.